The Starfish Analogy
One morning, a peaceful elderly man was walking along the beach. A big storm had just passed and the shore was littered with starfish as far as the eye could see. In the distance, a man noticed a woman picking the starfish up and throwing them back into the sea. As he approached her he asked, “Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” The woman replied, “When the sun gets high, if I don’t throw them back into the water, they will die.” The man scanned the many miles of beach and said, “But there must be tens of thousands of starfish. Sending a few back into the water can’t possibly make much of a difference.” The young woman knelt down, picked up another starfish, and threw it in the ocean. Then she smiled and said, “It made a difference to that one.”
Digital equity is a journey of a thousand steps. Along the way, you meet likeminded people who understand that we cannot afford to leave millions of all ages out of the digital fold. You also meet others who say it’s not their problem. There is simply no going back to the days when the internet was a luxury early adopters invested in through their monthly aol subscription. The internet is a utility on par with electricity and running water, and making it affordable and accessible impacts how we all work, play, and live each day. Digital access is also a social determinant of health. When I began working on digital equity full time in 2015, I learned that about 65,000,000 people across the country did not have access to the internet, mainly due to its cost. As I worked across the country in different states, it was not atypical to find the unconnected rate in communities was as high as 20-30%. Today, computers remain out of reach for millions for the same reason - cost.
On Saturday, May 7, Maribel Martinez Consulting will throw back five starfish - five families with 4th - 8th grade students who lack their own computer. In partnership with the Glasser/Schoenbaum Human Services Center and UnidosNOW, these five students, together with their parents, will build the computer, learn basic code, start a coding project they will continue at home, and discover free productivity tools the whole family can use. Thanks to Digital Navigators from UnidosNOW, the families have all been assisted with subscribing to low-cost broadband, so there will be no delay in putting their new computer to good use after Saturday’s #BuildCodeGo workshop.
Digital equity is a national problem. Some say the digital divide is widening. On May 7, 2022 in Sarasota, Florida, the digital divide will narrow just a little bit more.
We are proud to participate in #Remakedays, presented by the Suncoast Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, with the generous support of The Patterson Foundation. #Suncoastremakedays consists of more than 140 events in Charlotte, DeSoto, Manatee, and Sarasota counties in Florida, designed to provide hands-on and engaging educational experiences for youths of all ages and their families, caregivers, and educators.
Show your support for affordable broadband, computers, and digital skills training for all. Like, share, and retweet this blog with our thanks. If you’re in the Sarasota area this Saturday, drop in and see five families #BuildCodeGo.
